Bernie,

I can see that your solution works, but I don't understand the logic of it.
How does it work?

Goody

"Bernie Deitrick" wrote:

Goody,

Array enter (Enter using Ctrl-Shift-Enter) the formula

=MAX((A2:A100<B3)*A2:A100)

Where A2:A100 have your numbers, and B3 has the number of interest.....

HTH,
Bernie
MS Excel MVP


"Goody" wrote in message
...
I have a column of number that are in an irregular sequence (e.g., 1, 1, 3,
6, 1, 7, 7, 7, 9). I need a formula that will determine the highest value in
the column that is less than the value in a given cell in that column. For
example, if I select a cell with the number 6 in it, I need to know what is
the highest number less than 6. I have tried RANK and LARGE, but I can't
figure out how to make them work. Any suggestions?